Our addictions and compulsions are born out of our attempts to manage what we believe are unmanageable feelings and emotions. In this workshop, we will explore a variety of practices including yoga asanas, pranayama (breathing practices), meditation, journaling, and discussion that can enable us to be more present with our range of feelings and to meet those feelings with acceptance and compassion. No previous yoga experience is necessary.

Annie Mahon, Founder of Circle Yoga and Budding Yogis, is an Anusara-affiliated teacher dedicated to bringing the practice of mindful yoga to children, families, and adults in the DC area. She especially enjoys sharing mindfulness and yoga with students who don’t easily have access to these teachings.

Karen Soltes is the Director of the Therapeutic Yoga program at Circle Yoga/Budding Yogis and a graduate of the 400 hour teacher training at Willow Street Yoga Center. She holds masters degrees in both Clinical Social Work and Education and has worked in a variety of therapeutic and educational settings over the past 30 years.

The Seven Energetic Loops of Anusara Yoga are a great set of tools for helping us work against areas of built-in tension and stress, and for creating maximum length and space in our core. By examining the relationships of muscle and joint action that the Loops balance, and more importantly by exploring these relationships in our own bodies, we will playfully take full advantage of one of Anusara’s most subtle yet powerful tools of self-exploration. Perfect for any student interested in fine-tuning their tools for balanced action.

Joe Miller continues his Anusara study with his principle teacher, John Friend. He is also certified in Kripalu Yoga and graduated as a Certified Therapeutic Massage Therapist from the New Mexico School of Natural Therapeutics. From this, he brings a deep understanding of anatomy to his teaching. Joe's classes are witty and lighthearted, focusing on breath and alignment.

Part 1: Anusara Yoga Love Fest - Open the gateways to your spirit with Anusara's Universal Principles of Alignment and life affirming Tantric philosophy as your guides. Through a variety of standing poses, twists, backbends, hand balances and hip openers, this experience will open your heart, expand your boundaries, and infuse your Spring season with clarity and vision. All levels are welcome. Part 2: Anusara Yoga Teacher Training / Anusara Touch, or Hands-on Adjustments that Will Rock Your Students’ World! Learn how to give excellent hands-on assists that are both educational and empowering for your students, and also feel really good! In this two-part workshop, you will learn adjustments and explore assists for a variety of postures. Open to all yoga teachers and trainees. Part 3: Dissolving the Impossible / Hand-balancings and Backbends - Fly swifter and travel deeper in every pose by finding the key to the doors of your heart and your hips. Experience fuller self-expression and major heart-opening in a full spectrum of hand balancings and intermediate backbends. For Intermediate and Advanced students. Part 4: Anusara Yoga Teacher Training / The Art of Heart Language- Learn how to help your students walk away with the teachings pulsing inside them on a cellular level! Amy shares her tried and tested methods for skillfully "interweaving" both attitudinal heart language with technical instruction as a way to help students truly embody your theme. Open to all yoga teachers and trainees.

Amy has been a student of yoga since 1986. Her study of hatha yoga, pranayama, yoga therapeutics, and yoga philosophy led her to become a certified Anusara Yoga teacher in 2000. She has traveled extensively with Anusara founder, John Friend, apprenticing with him on his national tours, and continues to be a leader in the Anusara Yoga community. Amy has also studied closely with Tantric scholar, Dr. Douglas Brooks since 1999. For more information on Amy, see wildspirityoga.com.

Yoga Nidra (Integrative Restoration) is a transformative meditation practice that leads to lasting psychological, physical and spiritual healing. In this workshop, we delve deeply into the power of exploring opposites as they arise in the practice on the physical, emotional and mental levels. By learning to be with what is, and inviting both sides of an issue into our awareness, we allow old patterns to dissolve. Open to beginners and experienced practitioners.

Joy Kirstin is a life coach who has taught meditative practices for 20 years in spiritual communities around the world. She is an enthusiastic practitioner of Yoga Nidra, and has received Advanced iRest Yoga Nidra teacher training with Richard Miller. www.joylifecoach.com.

Join one of the world’s leading scholars of Hindu Tantrism for an in-depth look into the ecstatic dance of Shiva Nataraj. This unforgettable weekend will draw you deeper into your heart through the story, the myth and the symbolism of this great deity. In studying Nataraja, we are drawn to interpret and understand the dance of life as a great gift, and as we learn to see as he sees, we become the blessings bestowed by his great creative force. This program is part of the 2008 Anusara Immersion, so spaces are limited. Sign up now to ensure your space!

Dr. Douglas Brooks is among the world's leading scholars of Hindu Tantrism and the esoteric traditions of the Goddess. He received his Masters and PhD from Harvard University's Center for the Study of World Religions where he studied with several of the world's leading scholars of Sanskrit and Indian studies. Dr. Brooks is the author of several scholarly books on Hinduism and Tantra, and is currently Professor of Religion at the University of Rochester in Rochester, NY.

It is not just the fingers and mouth that play the flute, but the whole body. When the body is aligned, the flute tone is more full and vibrant, the breath is more plentiful and supported, and technique is more effortless. Participants will learn about expanding with their breath, playing with support from their back bodies, and standing with optimum support and alignment. Geared toward both young and adult flute players – and no need to bring your flutes!

Maria Hamburger, RYT and Certified Anusara Yoga teacher, continues to be inspired by her first yoga teacher, Suzie Hurley, as well as John Friend and other senior teachers. She danced and performed professionally for many years prior to teaching yoga. With great enthusiasm and clarity, Maria helps her students find a place of love, acceptance and courage within each class.

The chakra system is at the heart of our subtle anatomy and is a model for the flow of energy that runs through all living things, and particularly the human energy system. Learn the fundamentals of subtle energy and how to bring your body, mind, and soul into greater balance and alignment through the practice of specific poses, mantras, affirmations, meditations and healing techniques. We will draw upon the works of Ambika Wauters, Anodea Judith, Paul Grilley, and Christel Nani, a medical intuitive. In addition, we will explore using the power of the Anusara Principles of Alignment – particularly the focal points – to experience greater harmony. Please bring a journal.

Olga Rodriguez Rasmussen, D.Min, E-RYT, is a Certified Anusara Yoga® Instructor, a Reiki Master Teacher, and a practitioner of Reconnective Healing® and neo-energetiks. Olga encourages her students to embody greater alignment, and to connect more deeply with their hearts and the spiritual essence of the practice - a path inviting transformation, joy, celebration, and compassionate living.

Do you love the way you feel after a yoga class but aren't quite sure where to begin when you roll out your mat at home? Spend the afternoon learning how to take your yoga practice from the studio to your own home. In this workshop we will explore ways to create a sacred space, how to create mini-asana sequences and how to practice safely if you are a newer yoga student . We will also discuss ways to practice when you have limited time. Whether you are a home practice newbie or seasoned practitioner wanting to deepen your home yoga practice, this workshop is for you!

Naomi Gottlieb-Miller, RYT, began her study of yoga in 1999 to take the edge off of living in NYC. A graduate of WS YTT Program, she continues her yoga study with senior Anusara teachers. Naomi brings lightness and play to all her classes, encouraging students to invite a healthy dose of laughter into their practice. She is inspired by the joy her students bring to their mats and considers teaching yoga the best gig ever.

Developed by Rod Stryker, ParaYoga® unlocks “supreme” accomplishment in practice and life.

Part 1: ParaYoga® Vinyasa Solar Practice - Introduction to the Six Gems™. Practice emphasizes twists, backbends, and Bandhas. All levels.

Part 2: ParaYoga® Vinyasa Lunar Practice - Finding our source of healing and peace through forward bends, long holds, specific bandha, pranayama, and meditation practices. All levels.

Part 3: Pranayama; The Gateway to Soul - Exploring ways to still the mind and attract the forces of happiness through breath, retentions, and Bandha. Two years Asana practice recommended.

Part 4: ParaYoga® Vinyasa Twist Practice - Twisting frees limitation in the neck, shoulders, hips, and vital organs. Asana, Vinyasa flow, holdings, internal concentration techniques, Pranayama, and meditation. All levels.

Part 5: ParaYoga® Vinyasa Fire Practice - The inner fire awakens within the spine. Combination of Asanas, Bandha, and Mudras. Advanced students/ Previous ParaYoga® and pranayama experience required.

Part 6: ParaYoga® Meditation and the Six Gems - ParaYoga®’s meditation links the energetics of Asana with Yoga’s classical teachings on mastery of the mind. We explore: breath awareness, visualization, Mantra, and Kriya. All levels welcome. Prior meditation experience recommended.

If this workshop is full, please check back online as more spaces may be released.

Rod Stryker has taught Tantra, Hatha, and Yogananda's Kriya Yoga for more than 25 years. He holds the title of Yogiraj, specializing in the art of personalizing Yoga and meditation practices for individuals, known as Anava-Upaya-Yoga. He is a student of Pandit Rajmani Tigunait Ph.D. and a teacher in the lineage of the great Sri Swami Rama of the Himalayas. Rod is widely considered to be one of the preeminent Yoga and meditation teachers in the United States.

Come explore the therapeutic power of Anusara Yoga to support your body's natural healing process. Through the Universal Principles of Alignment, the knowledge of basic anatomy and breath work, you will learn how to relieve pain and discomfort, and avoid common injuries. In this workshop you gain access in how to transform any weakness or injury into a greater experience of strength and freedom. If you suffer from neck or shoulder pain, you won't want to miss out. Sign up now! This workshop always fills up quickly! All levels welcome.

Kate Miller is a certified Anusara yoga teacher with over 10 years of teaching experience. Kate inspires her students to radically affirm and honor all that they embody, and believes that we can only grow and transform ourselves from a place of deep recognition and acceptance. Kate poetically weaves through her classes the philosophical teachings of yoga with precise alignment instruction that invites her students straight into their hearts. Kate currently lives in Santa Monica, California where she is a teacher and doula. To learn more about Kate, please visit www.redmoonyoga.com.